Chapter 5 - The Truth About Why He Chose Me
Dominic stared at the name on his phone screen.
He didn't answer.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
The entire world seemed to pause around that one incoming call.
I looked at my father.
For the first time in my life, I saw something I never thought I would see in his eyes.
Fear.
Not for himself.
For me.
"Dad," I whispered.
"Who is that?"
My father didn't respond immediately.
His eyes remained fixed on Dominic's phone.
Then he said one sentence.
"Someone who should have disappeared years ago."
A cold feeling moved through my body.
Dominic heard him.
And his face changed.
"You know him?"
My father looked at Dominic.
"I know what he did."
The phone continued ringing.
Dominic finally declined the call.
The silence afterward was worse.
Because everyone in that hospital entrance understood the same thing.
That call wasn't random.
That name wasn't random.
And Dominic wasn't just hiding something from me.
He was hiding something from everyone.
"Emma," Dominic said.
I looked at him.
I hated that my heart still reacted when he said my name.
Because a part of me still remembered the man he used to be.
The man who brought me soup when I was sick.
The man who held my hand during difficult days.
The man who promised me we would grow old together.
But that man had become impossible to find.
"Don't listen to him."
My voice was quiet.
"Who?"
Dominic swallowed.
"My father?"
"No."
I looked at him.
"You."
That hurt him.
I saw it.
But I couldn't feel sorry for him anymore.
"You married me because of my father."
Dominic looked away.
That was all the answer I needed.
My father closed the folder.
"Emma, we need to leave."
Dominic stepped forward.
"No."
Everyone looked at him.
"I need to explain."
My father looked at him.
"You had five years."
Dominic froze.
Five years.
That number stayed in my mind.
Because my father wasn't talking about a recent mistake.
He was talking about a long plan.
A long secret.
A long betrayal.
I held Leo closer.
"Five years?"
I looked at Dominic.
"What does that mean?"
He didn't answer.
My father did.
"It means he knew exactly who you were before he ever approached you."
I felt sick.
The hospital suddenly felt too bright.
Too loud.
Too crowded.
I wanted to wake up.
I wanted someone to tell me this was a misunderstanding.
That my husband wasn't a stranger.
That my marriage wasn't built on something I didn't know.
But nobody did.
Because it was true.
"Dad..."
My voice cracked.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
My father looked at me.
That question hurt him.
I could see it.
"I thought I was protecting you."
I shook my head.
"You let me marry someone who was hiding his real reason for being with me."
"I know."
His answer surprised me.
He didn't defend himself.
He didn't make excuses.
He simply accepted it.
And somehow that made it harder.
"I should have told you."
For the first time that day, my father looked like just my father.
Not a general.
Not a powerful man.
A father who realized he had failed his daughter.
"I believed Dominic changed."
I looked at him.
"You knew him?"
My father nodded slowly.
"Not personally at first."
He looked at Dominic.
"But I knew about his family."
Linda immediately became tense.
"My family has nothing to do with this."
My father turned toward her.
"That is not true."
Linda's expression hardened.
"You have no proof."
My father opened the folder again.
This time, he removed a document.
A single page.
He handed it to me.
I looked down.
It was an old investigation report.
The top had a date.
Seven years ago.
And a name.
Dominic Hale.
I read the first few lines.
Then my hands started shaking.
"What is this?"
Nobody answered.
I looked at Dominic.
"What is this?"
He closed his eyes.
Like he already knew there was no way to escape.
"Emma..."
"No."
My voice became stronger.
"You don't get to say my name like everything is normal."
He stopped.
I looked back at the paper.
The words blurred.
"Financial investigation."
"Unauthorized access."
"Confidential information."
I looked at my father.
"Was he dangerous?"
My father's silence told me everything.
Dominic immediately shook his head.
"No."
I looked at him.
"No?"
"You think I married you because of your father?"
I didn't answer.
"Yes, I knew who he was."
The honesty shocked me.
"But that wasn't the reason."
My father watched him carefully.
"Then explain."
Dominic looked at me.
And for a moment, I saw something different.
Regret.
Real regret.
"I was supposed to get close to your family."
My chest tightened.
"Why?"
He looked down.
"Because someone believed your father had information."
"What information?"
He didn't answer.
My father stepped forward.
"Who sent you?"
Dominic remained silent.
That silence was louder than words.
My father repeated the question.
"Who sent you?"
Linda suddenly interrupted.
"Dominic, don't."
Everyone looked at her.
The fear in her voice was obvious.
Not anger.
Fear.
My father turned toward her.
"You know."
Linda didn't respond.
"You knew from the beginning."
Still nothing.
I looked at the woman who had smiled while her son left me outside the hospital.
The woman who told me I was overreacting.
The woman who seemed so confident.
Now she looked terrified.
"Dad..."
My voice shook.
"Who are these people?"
My father looked at me.
"I don't know how much you should hear right now."
I almost laughed.
After everything?
After finding out my husband married me with a hidden agenda?
After discovering everyone knew secrets except me?
"You don't get to decide that anymore."
My father became quiet.
Because he knew I was right.
I looked at Dominic.
"Tell me."
He stared at the ground.
Then finally spoke.
"The first time I saw you..."
A pause.
"I wasn't looking for a wife."
The words cut deeper than I expected.
"I was looking for access."
I closed my eyes.
Every memory changed.
Our first date.
Our first kiss.
The day he proposed.
The wedding.
All of it.
I wondered which moments were real.
And which ones were part of a plan.
"But then something happened."
I opened my eyes.
Dominic looked at me.
"I fell in love with you."
I wanted to believe him.
I hated that I wanted to believe him.
Because love was the one thing that had made me ignore everything else.
"Then why did you leave me?"
My question destroyed him.
He looked away.
"I was scared."
"Of what?"
He didn't answer.
My father did.
"He found out."
I turned.
"Who?"
My father's face became serious.
"The person who sent him."
A cold silence filled the entrance.
Dominic looked at my father.
"He's back."
Those two words changed everything.
My father immediately reached for his phone.
"Get Emma and Leo out of here."
I looked at him.
"What is happening?"
Before he could answer, every phone in the area started ringing.
The security team's phones.
My father's phone.
Dominic's phone.
Then mine.
I looked down.
A message had arrived.
No number.
No name.
Just one sentence.
"Charles Brooks, you failed to protect her once."
My breathing stopped.
A second message appeared.
"Now watch what happens when I take back what belongs to me."
May you like
Then the hospital doors behind us slowly opened.
And a man standing inside whispered my name...
